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Title: Boat Sailing
In Fair Weather and Foul, 6th ed.
Author: A. J. Kenealy
Release Date: October 29, 2017 [EBook #55846]
Language: English
Character set encoding: UTF-8
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cover
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BOAT SAILING,
FAIR WEATHER AND FOUL.
Good Luck and a Fair Wind.
A. J. Kenealy.
OUTING LIBRARY OF SPORT.
BOAT SAILING
IN
FAIR WEATHER AND FOUL.
BY
CAPTAIN A. J. KENEALY.
"Man made him a boat of a hollow tree,
And thus became lord of the bounding sea."
1903.
SIXTH EDITION.
REVISED.
WITH ILLUSTRATIONS AND DIAGRAMS.
THE OUTING PUBLISHING CO.,
NEW YORK. LONDON.
6
7
Copyrighted by
The Outing Publishing Company, 1903,
NEW YORK.
8
W
PREFACE.
hen the first edition of this little book was printed in 1894 my publishers thought they would be very lucky if they
ever disposed of half the number of copies turned out by the press. I had the same melancholy forebodings. The
result has shown that our fears were groundless. The book was written in a simple sailorly style for all lovers of the sea and
boats. That it should have received such cordial commendation as it has from amateurs and professionals has been both a
pleasure and a surprise. In sending it out on its sixth edition, I cannot lose the opportunity of thanking my critics who have
been very flattering to whatever merits it may possess.
A. J. Kenealy.
New York, April, 1903.
9
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I.
Preliminary Hints to an Amateur with Ambitions Toward Owning a Boat
—Why He Ought Join a Yacht—Club Handiness of the Cat-Rig
15
CHAPTER II.
The Choice of a Boat—Advantages of Stationary Ballast and a
Centerboard—How to Avoid Being "Done" in a Boat Trade—Bargains
at the Navy Yard—The Way to Cure a "Nail-Sick" Craft
22
CHAPTER III.
Trial Spin in a Cat-Boat—How to Get Under Way, Beat to Windward
and Run Back, with Instructions How to Act if Caught in a Squall or
Stranded on a Shoal, and How to Avoid Collisions and Come to Anchor
28
CHAPTER IV.
Advantages of the Yawl-Rig for General Cruising Purposes, especially
when "Single Handed," with a Description of a Representative Craft—
Disadvantages of the Ballast Fin for All Purposes Except Racing—The
Fin in Model Yachting Years Ago
37
CHAPTER V.
The Popularity of the Knockabout as an Excellent Cruising Craft, with
Some Observations on the One-design Classes from Schooners to
Dories
55
CHAPTER VI.
Keep Your Weather-Eye Open All the Time When Afloat—How to
Handle a Boat in Heavy Weather or a Summer Squall—The Use of the
Sea Anchor in Riding Out a Gale, and How Shipwreck May Be Avoided
by the Judicious Use of Oil
65
CHAPTER VII.
Overhauling the Yacht—Practical Instructions for Cleaning and Painting
the Craft Inside and Out, with Hints on the Care of Hull, Spars, Canvas
and Running gear
88
CHAPTER VIII.
Fitting Out for a Cruise—Hints on Equipping and Provisioning a Boat so
as to be Prepared for All Emergencies—A Sailor's Solution of the
Culinary Problem—Hot "Grub" in a Gale
115
CHAPTER IX.
Beating to Windward—The Theory and Practice of Sailing a Vessel
Against the Breeze
128
10
11
CHAPTER X.
Combination Rowing and Sailing Boats—The Jib and Mainsail Sprit,
Leg-of-Mutton, Cat, Balance Lug and Sliding Gunter-Rigs—The Folding
Centerboard
140
CHAPTER XI.
Rigging and Sails, with Some Impartial Remarks on the Lanyard and the
Deadeye, as Opposed to the Turnbuckle—Standing and Running Gear,
and the Bending and Setting of Canvas
155
CHAPTER XII.
Laying Up for the Winter—Practical Suggestions for Protecting a Boat
and Her Gear from the Stress of Our Inclement Climate—A Plea for
Trustworthy Skippers and Engineers
168
CHAPTER XIII.
Useful Hints and Recipes, with Some Remarks on the Buying of a
Binocular Marine Glass, from the "Brain-Pan" of a Practical Sailor
175
CHAPTER XIV.
The Rule of the Road at Sea: Being a Digest of the Present International
Regulations for Preventing Collisions on Oceans and in Harbors
185
CHAPTER XV.
The Mariner's Compass, with Remarks on Deviation, Variation, Leeway,
etc.
192
CHAPTER XVI.
Charts, with Some Hints as to Navigation by Dead-reckoning—Lead,
Log, and Lookout
203
CHAPTER XVII.
Marlinespike Seamanship: Being Practical Instructions in the Art of
Making the Splices, Knots and Bends in Ordinary Use
207
CHAPTER XVIII.
Weather Wrinkles from the Scientific Point of View of Professional
Meteorologists and also Jack Tar
217
CHAPTER XIX.
Sea Cookery for Yachtsmen
223
CHAPTER XX.
Nautical Terms in Common Use, from which all Obsolete and Antiquated
Terms, such as were in use aboard the Ark, have been eliminated
236
Addenda—Recent Changes of Sail Plan and Rigging in Modern Craft
248
ILLUSTRATIONS AND DIAGRAMS.
Frontispiece. Turning the Stake.
PAGE
Yawl in a Squall,
41
Latest Type of Fin-Keel,
49
Sail Plan of Modern Fin-Keel,
54
Seawanhaka, 21-foot Knockabout,
56
Seawanhaka Knockabout,
57
Sail Plan Seawanhaka Knockabout,
58
Drogue, or Sea Anchor,
70
Diagram of Floating Anchor,
71
Floating Anchor in Use,
72
The Boston Knockabout, Gosling,
75
Plan of Oil Distributor,
80
In Dry Dock,
98
Hauled Out for Painting,
98
Making Ready for a New Dress,
114
Pleasant Cat-Boat Sailing,
119
Sailing Under Varying Conditions of Wind,
128
Running Before the Wind,
130
Gybing,
131
Close Hauled on Port Tack,
132
Close Hauled on Starboard Tack,
133
Dead Beat to Windward,
134
A Long Leg and a Short Leg,
138
The Manœuvre of Tacking,
139
Whip Purchase and Traveler,
140
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Jib and Mainsail Rig,
141
Sprit Rig,
143
Leg-of-Mutton Rig,
147
Cat Rig,
148
Balance Lug Rig,
150
Sliding Gunter Rig,
151
Detail of Sliding Gunter Rig,
152
Folding Centerboard,
154
Shroud, Deadeye, Lanyard,
156
Turnbuckle,
157
Topmast Rigging,
158
Rig of Running Bowsprit,
159
Horse for Main Sheet,
161
Gear for Hauling Out Loose-footed Mainsail,
166
Luncheon in the Cock-pit,
179
Scowing an Anchor,
180
"Half Raters,"
184
The Compass,
193
Marlinespike,
207
Knots and Splices,
208
Cautionary Signals,
221
Storm Signals,
222
A Yachtsman's Stove,
223
The Ideal Fry-pan,
225
A Nest of Stew-Pans,
227
Ice Tub,
229
A Traveling Companion,
231
The Sloop Yacht,
246
The Cutter Yacht,
247
The Sail Plan and Rig of a Modern Schooner,
249
The Sail Plan and Rig of a Modern Yawl,
251
TURNING THE STAKE.
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I.
ADVICE TO AN AMATEUR.
ll of us remember the old sailor's retort to the man who reproached him for soaking his clay in bad rum.
"There ain't such a thing under heaven as bad rum," he sagely remarked. "Of course some rum is better
than another, but I have been knocking about the world for more than fifty years and never did I drink a
glass of rum that deserved to be called bad, and I got outside of some pretty fiery tipple in my time."
The same is true in a general way of boats. There are many types of boat and each has some peculiar
attribute to recommend it. No two craft, for instance, could be more widely different in every way than a Gloucester fishing
dory and a Cape Cod cat-boat, yet each when properly handled has safely ridden out an Atlantic gale. Of course if their
movements had been directed by farm hands both would have foundered. In point of fact, there is no royal road to the
acquisition of seamanship. Experience is what is needed first, last and all the time. It is true, however, that the rough sea
over which the learner has necessarily to sail may be smoothed for him, even as the breakers on a harbor bar are rendered
passable for a homeward-bound craft by the judicious application of a little oil.
The choice of a boat depends upon a vast variety of circumstances, the chief of which is the location of the prospective
boat owner. If he lives on the Great South Bay, for example, he should provide himself with a craft of light draught, almost
capable of sailing on a clover field after a heavy fall of dew. Equipped with a centerboard and a sail a boat of this kind, if
of the right shape and construction, will be found comfortable, safe and of moderate speed. A man may also enjoy an
infinite amount of pleasure aboard her, after he has mastered the secret of her management. There are so many sandbars in
the Great South Bay that a boat of light draught is indispensable to successful sailing. The same remark applies also to
Barnegat Bay and adjacent New Jersey waters. There are some persons who believe that it is impossible to combine light
draught and safety. They make a great mistake. A twelve-foot sneakbox in Barnegat Bay, with the right man steering, will
live for a long time in rough water that would sorely try the capacity of a much larger craft in the hands of a lubber. The
same is true of a sharpie.
The man who makes up his mind that he wants a sailing boat should study well the geography of his vicinity. If he lives in
New York or on the Sound his course is easy. He is sure to be within reach of a yacht or boat club from whose members
he can get all the information he needs. They will tell him the boat best adapted to his requirements and his finances, and if
they persuade him to join their organization they will be conferring upon him a favor. I have traveled a good deal among the
yacht clubs of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, and I never came across a more generous, more obliging and
more sportsmanlike body of men than those enrolled on the rosters of these enterprising associations. They are convinced
that there is more real pleasure to the square inch in the possession of a stout boat capable of being managed by a couple
of men, than there is in the proprietorship of a big yacht that carries a crew of twenty and whose owner probably knows
nothing about the art of sailing her, but depends all the time on his skipper. It is a pleasure to meet these men and listen to
their yarns. The earnestness, the zeal and the ability with which they pursue their favorite pastime are indeed commendable.
And the best of it is they are always ready to welcome recruits, and to pass them through the rudimentary mill of
seamanship and navigation, their motto being "Every man his own skipper." The only requisite necessary to membership in
one or more of these clubs is that you should be a "clubable" man with manly instincts. Young fellows, too, are eagerly
sought, so you need have no compunction about seeking their doors, the latchstrings of which are always down.
By all means join a club, I say. You get all the advantages of the house and the anchorage, and all the benefits that
accrue to association with men who are ardent and enthusiastic in the enjoyment of their pet diversion. Besides—let me
whisper a word in your ear, my brother, you of the slender purse or may be economic instincts—it will be cheaper for you
in the end; it will put money in your purse. Your boat will be looked after all the year round by watchful guardians, who will
see that it isn't stripped or rifled by river pirates, and that the elements do not mar its beauty. I confess I was surprised
when I learned how little it costs to become entitled to all the privileges of these clubs, and it is owing to their moderate
charges that the "mosquito fleet" in the vicinity of New York is growing so big and interest in the sport is increasing so
rapidly.
What I have written of New York is true, perhaps, in a greater measure of Boston. There is no finer sheet of water for
boat sailing than Boston Bay, and no people in the world are more devoted to the sport than those who dwell in the city of
culture and its sea-washed environs. There are plenty of yacht clubs between Point Allerton, on the south, and
Marblehead, on the north. It has been ascertained that more than five thousand members have joined these organizations
and that nineteen hundred yachts are enrolled on their lists, most of the craft being less than twenty feet on the water line. It
will thus be seen that Boston fully appreciates the value of small sailing craft as a means of amusement and healthful
recreation. The port from which Volunteer, Mayflower and Puritan originally hailed, though justly proud of those three
magnificent racing yachts, has always been distinguished for turning out stout, able and seaworthy vessels of the smaller
type, and also for breeding a sturdy race of men who know every trick of seamanship. The majority of the boats are so
constructed and rigged as to ensure that they will render a good account of themselves in a blow and a seaway. Thus the
"sandbagger" type of vessel is rarely found "down east," and this, in my opinion, need not be regretted.
The catrigged boat, with stationary ballast and a centerboard, may be said to be the type generally preferred in those
waters. The Newport cat-boat is famous the world over for her handiness, speed and ability. I know that it is fashionable
for scientific men and swell naval architects to decry the seaworthiness of these boats. It has been urged that the weight of
the mast in the eyes of the craft is a serious objection, a strain on the hull, and not unlikely to be carried away for want of
proper staying. The long boom also has been objected to, because of its liability to trip. The craft has been declared
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difficult to steer and a regular "yawer." But while saying unkind things of the cat-boat's behavior in a blow, no critic,
however biased, has ventured to deny her general handiness.
I might remind these gentlemen that the owner of a pleasure boat does not as a rule sail her in a blow or in a seaway, but
this would not be a fair or legitimate argument. The elements are treacherous. A summer storm often plays havoc among
the shipping, and a man who ventures seaward in the morning in a balmy breeze and with the water smooth as a horsepond
may be caught in a savage blow, followed by a heavy sea, both of which may sorely try the capabilities of his craft and his
own resources as a seaman.
I am such a devout believer, however, in a cat-boat of proper form and rig, that I will defend her as a good and handy
craft in both fair weather and foul. It blows hard in Narragansett Bay sometimes, and I have often known a devil of a sea
to be kicked up off Brenton's Reef lightship. But the Newport cat-boat, with a couple of reefs down, comes out of the
harbor and dances over the steep waves like a duck or a cork. I never saw one of them come to grief, and in fact they
have always impressed me as being the handiest all-round boat afloat. I have sailed in them in all sorts of weather, and I
am not likely to alter my opinion. Many of the objections raised against them are idle. For instance, the mast can be so
stayed as to be perfectly secure. There is also no reason why the boom should project so far over the stern as to trip, and
in this connection I should like to ask of what use is a topping lift unless one avails himself of it in just such an emergency?
A man should always keep the boom well topped up when running before the wind in a seaway, and by this means he may
avoid much trouble and possibly peril.
The above remarks are applicable to both salt water and fresh water, to the yachts of the North, the South, as well as of
the Great and Little Lakes, and indeed wherever the glorious sport flourishes. In point of fact, all the hints and directions
given in these chapters may be followed with profit on the Pacific Coast as well as on the Atlantic Seaboard, on Lake
Michigan or on the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
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I
II.
THE CHOICE OF A BOAT.
f any ambitious would-be mariner, old or young, hailing from anywhere were to ask me what sort of a boat I would
recommend him to build or buy, I would answer him frankly that an able cat-boat, with a centerboard and stationary
ballast would, in my judgment, be best. I would advise him to shun the "sandbaggers"—not that one cannot enjoy an
immense amount of exciting sport in one of them, but because they seem to me to be only fit for racing, and I will tell you
why. A man when he goes on a quiet cruise doesn't want to be bothered by having to shift heavy bags of sand every time
the boat goes about. It is too much like hard work, and by the time your day's fun is finished you feel stiff in the joints. I
have other arguments against the use of shifting ballast, but do not think any other save the one mentioned is necessary.
This point disposed of, let us confer. Of what shall the stationary ballast for our able cat-boat consist? Outside lead is of
course the best, but its first cost is a serious matter. A cast-iron false keel or shoe answers admirably, and is moderate in
price. Some persons object to it, claiming that it rusts and corrodes; that its fastenings decay the wooden keel to which it is
bolted, and that its weight strains a boat and soon causes her to become leaky. There is of course some truth in these
charges; but if the boat is built by a mechanic and not an impostor, none of these disadvantages will exist, and the cast-iron
keel will prove to be both efficient and economical.
But if, by straining a point, lead can be afforded, procure it by all means and have it bolted on outside. It neither
tarnishes nor corrodes, and as it does not deteriorate, its marketable value is always the same. Racing yachts have,
however, been known to sell for less than their lead ballast cost, but such instances are rare. It should be borne in mind
that the lower down the lead is placed the less the quantity required, and the greater its efficiency.
There are always a number of second-hand cat-boats in the market for sale at a reasonable rate, and an advertisement
will bring plenty of replies. But for a tyro to purchase a boat haphazard is a mistake on general principles. It is like a sailor
buying a horse. Get some honest shipwright or boat builder to examine, say, some half-dozen boats whose dimensions suit
you, and whose prices are about what you think you can afford. There are certain portions of a cat-boat that are subject to
violent strains when the craft is under way. The step of the mast and the centerboard trunk are parts that require the vigilant
eye of an expert.
Human nature is prone to temptation, and paint and putty are used quite often to conceal many important defects in a
craft advertised for sale. The keen eye of a mechanic who has served his time to a boat-builder will soon detect all
deficiencies of this kind, will ferret out rotten timbers, and under his advice and counsel you may succeed in picking up at a
bargain some sound, seaworthy and serviceable craft in which you can enjoy yourself to your heart's content.
But if some rotten hull is foisted on you by an unscrupulous person you will be apt to "kick yourself round the block," for
she will be always in need of repairs, and in the end, when she is finally condemned, you will find on figuring up the cost
that it would have been money in your pocket if you had built a new boat.
The principal boat-builders of New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Massachusetts are men of high character, who
take a pride in their work (which is thoroughly first-class), and whose prices are strictly moderate. Any one of these will
construct a capital boat of good model and fair speed. I am an old crank and a bigot in many things appertaining to boats
and the sea, but I hope that any reader of this who is going to build a pleasure craft will follow my advice at least in this
instance: Let her be copper-fastened above and below the water-line. Don't use a single galvanized nail or bolt in her
construction. See that the fastenings are clenched on a roove—not simply turned down. Don't spoil the ship for a paltry
ha'porth of tar. Many builders, for the sake of economy, use galvanized iron throughout, and will take a solemn affidavit
that it is quite as good as copper. But in the innermost cockles of their hearts they know they are wrong. Others more
conscientious use copper fastenings below the water-line and galvanized iron above; but copper throughout is my cry, and
so will I ever maintain while I am on this side of the Styx.
Sometimes one may pick up a good serviceable boat at a Navy Yard sale. Uncle Sam's boats are of fair design and
well built. They are often condemned because they are what is called "nail sick," a defect which can be easily remedied.
Occasionally a steamship's life-boat can be bought for a trifle, and if it be fitted with a false keel with an iron shoe on it, will
prove thoroughly seaworthy and a moderately good sailer.
Mr. E. F. Knight, the English barrister and author of the "Cruise of the Falcon," tells how he bought a life-boat
condemned by the Peninsular and Oriental Company. She was thirty feet long with a beam of eight feet, very strong, being
built of double skins of teak, and, like all the life-boats used by that company, an excellent sea boat. This craft he timbered
and decked, rigged her as a ketch, and crossed the North Sea in her, going as far as Copenhagen and back, and
encountering plenty of bad weather during the adventurous voyage. Mr. Knight is a believer in the pointed or life-boat
stern for a small vessel. He was caught in a northwest gale, in the Gulf of Heligoland, in the above-mentioned craft, and
had to sail sixty miles before a high and dangerous sea. His boat showed no tendency to broach to, "but rushed straight
ahead across the steep sea in a fashion that gave us confidence and astonished us. Had she had the ordinary yacht's stern
to present to those following masses of water, instead of a graceful wedge offering little resistance, we should have had a
very uncomfortable time of it. Many men dislike a pointed stern and consider it ugly. However that may be it behaves
handsomely, and we should certainly recommend any amateur building a sailing boat for coasting purposes to give her the
life-boat stern."
Mr. Knight fitted his boat with lee boards, which no doubt served their purpose admirably. I should, however, favor a
false keel and an iron shoe as being more efficient and less unsightly. I should not advise the purchaser of a condemned
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